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(Foxborough, MA, 08/15/14) Tom Brady talks with offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels prior to the start of the Patriots verses Eagles game at Gillette Stadium. Friday, August 15, 2014. Staff photo by John Wilcox.

Tom Brady doesn't like seeing a flag parade any more than the fans or his teammates. But armed with the knowledge officials are going to throw flags to make the players understand they're going to be calling the games tighter, the Patriots quarterback, who this morning made his weekly appearance on WEEI's Dennis & Callahan Show, said it was up to the players to make the necessary adjustments.

“I don’t know whether they throw 20 flags or five flags over the course of the game. Some calls go your way, some calls don’t,” Brady said. “I think players like when they let you play, more so than anything. But at the same time, the refs stand up there in front of us on whatever day it was, on Wednesday, and said, ‘Look, we’re throwing a lot of flags. If we see illegal contact, if we see defensive holding, if we see hands to the face, those are real points of emphasis for this year.’ And they showed video. So when those things come up, they’re throwing the flags. And they did in practice a lot, too.

“It’s just being able to adjust and being disciplined and being good decision-makers. … You just have to learn to play within the rules. And those adjust on a weekly basis, depending on how the refs call the game. And we have a pretty good idea of how they’re going to call the game going into it. Some refs throw a lot of flags, some refs don’t throw a lot of flags. Our coaches try to prepare us on that. And once you get out there on the field, you play within the rules to the best of your ability. And if they’re calling it tight, you’ve got to be able to adjust. That’s all part of the decision-making process as a player.

“Hopefully, there’s not 20-plus flags a game. That’s a lot of flags. That will make for long football games.”

The Pats-Eagles game, which had 21 accepted penalties, took 3 hours, 11 minutes to complete. The previous week in Washington, with 19 accepeted penalties, was 2 hours, 45 minutes.